Geoffrey Anyanwu, Awka
Human rights group, the International Society for Civil Liberties and the Rule of Law (Intersociety), on Monday, warned that the current spate of defections in Nigeria’s political space was capable of truncating democracy in the country.
Intersociety stated that the way political leaders were moving from one party to the other would adversely affect governance in Nigeria.
In a statement signed by the chairman, Board of Trustees of the group, Mr. Emeka Umeagbalasi, Intersociety said apart from speedily facilitating the funeral ceremonies of Nigeria’s democracy and good governance, other consequence of defection in the country was near state of anarchy.
Other consequences, it further said, were joblessness, retardation of economic growth and development, mass poverty and heightening insecurity.
The group said, “Nigerian Government must, therefore, return the country to a glorious path including service and humanity-oriented governance or face the citizens’ anger which may most likely be too difficult to manage.”
While noting that the defection of politicians was portraying Nigeria in bad light, the group said it showed that neither the politicians nor the political parties have clear-cut ideologies as the defections were all for selfish reasons.
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Intersociety, however, called on the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, to use the opportunity of the ‘anomaly’ to correct future occurrences by approaching the Supreme Court.
It also called on the Federal Government as a long term solution to allow all ethnic nationalities in Nigeria to determine how to live together or apart in peace.
“In the interim, the AGF can approach the Supreme Court of Nigeria using the recent defection by the Senate President to resolve once and for all the maddening political defection in Nigeria.
“The Government of Nigeria must also reverse its present inglorious political path and return the country to constitutionalism and democratic conventions.
“As a long term solution, the government must allow all the ethnic nationalities in Nigeria through referendum or representative capacities to determine or re-determine how to live together or apart in dignity, peace and prosperity.
“The present master-servant union of animal kingdom whereby the fear of cattle or cow and their herders and patrons in Nigeria is the beginning of wisdom for the fearer is not only a recipe for anarchy but also totally intolerable and unacceptable,” the group’s statemet said.